WASHINGTON: US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has announced that a virtual Covid-19 Ministerial will be held on November 10 because "this global pandemic necessitates global action and continued focus."

"Foreign ministers must play a key role in ending the pandemic and preparing for the future. We will assess the current state of the global response to Covid-19, the virus's impact, and the threat of future pandemics with my counterparts and leaders from regional and international organisations "In a statement released late Friday by the State Department, Blinken was quoted as saying.

"We will  talk about how we can get closer to vaccine equity and impact." We will  talk about the importance of long-term funding for global health security." We will also look at how improved regional collaboration and coordinated political leadership can help with current and future preparedness and response," he said. The upcoming Ministerial will, according to Blinken, "build on the momentum generated by President Joe Biden's Covid-19 Summit, and it aims to establish a platform for regular engagements among Foreign Ministers to address health security."

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